QDR is transitioning to a model where depositors bear some curation costs. Affiliates of QDR’s institutional members will often be able to deposit free of charge and discounts are available for others. More information here.

Project Summary

This study evaluates experiences in three Mexican cities to assess whether decentralization and commercialization practices have resulted in improved water and sanitation services. It finds that commercialization has increased social conflict surrounding urban services provision, and that local institutional constraints further undermine mayors’ ability to adopt politically contentious policies. This study examines Mexico, a country that has experienced an extensive amount of both decentralization and neoliberal policies, and selects the water and sanitation sector, which 79 percent of all Mexican mayors list as the most important municipal responsibility. Through process tracing the author examines how two-macro-level processes—decentralization and neoliberal commercialization—interacted with the political and institutional context within Mexican municipalities to disincentivize the adoption of cost recovery, adversely affecting service outcomes. The causal leverage of this study is gained from “within-case” analysis of three of the largest urban centers within Mexico State (Estado de México): Naucalpan, Nezahualcóyotl (Neza), and Toluca. As the country’s economic powerhouse, Mexico State is a critical case for examining whether decentralization and commercialization policies have helped improve public services in Mexico more broadly. Such a wealthy state would be the least likely to have public services deficiencies, so if service problems are identified within Mexico State’s urban centers, they are more likely to be seen throughout the country in poorer and less industrialized regions. This article presents data collected as part of a larger research project on the politics of urban services reform in Mexico after the “top-down” implementation of decentralization and commercialization reforms. This larger research project, a subnational comparative research design, entailed extensive field research in more than nine cities located in the states of Mexico State, Guanajuato and Veracruz. The primary research question was: under what conditions do mayors successfully circumvent political and institutional barriers to services reform and adopt commercialization policies in the water and sanitation sector?

Data Abstract

The collected data cover the period from 1997 to 2012 and were gathered during extensive field research in 2007-2008 and 2012 that entailed 180 in-depth interviews, data collection from internal government documents, newspaper articles and archival material. Interviews lasted from one to four hours, and interview subjects were identified using snowball sampling. Almost all interviews were conducted in person at municipal, state and federal level of government with government employees, elected officials, policymakers, business leaders, consultants, engineers and academics. The author also observed meetings with government officials, the day-to-day office work of water utilities and also went on site visits with water utility engineers being interviewed to illustrate the conditions of the infrastructure network. In addition, archival research was conducted at the Archivo Historico del Agua in Mexico City, and in electronic archives in the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank (exploring the international loan history of Mexico’s water and sewage sector as well as diagnostic studies of the sector). Extensive research was conducted to identify all secondary source material written in Spanish about the cities under study, their local government, economies, party politics, democratization experiences, protests and collective action surrounding reform policies, and technical aspects of the water and sewage sector. This included extensive compilation and analysis of primary source documents – e.g., government performance data – at three tiers of government, including occasional reports from consultants or the private sector and newspaper coverage for the periods under study in local Spanish-language newspapers. Additionally, transparency requests were made to the government regarding the number and content of formal protest and petitions against government regarding the policies under study.

Almost all of interviews were tape recorded; of those, approximately 30 percent were transcribed, while the remaining 70 percent were summarized. Extensive notes were taken during and after each interview. For observations, notes were taken after events. For newspaper articles, information was scanned and later notes were taken on the content of the information (including timelines, and the construction of comparable categories of analysis for each case in table/chart form in order to identify the chain of events). For transparency requests sent to the government, notes were not taken or rewritten.

Project Summary

This study evaluates experiences in three Mexican cities to assess whether decentralization and commercialization practices have resulted in improved water and sanitation services. It finds that commercialization has increased social conflict surrounding urban services provision, and that local institutional constraints further undermine mayors’ ability to adopt politically contentious policies. This study examines Mexico, a country that has experienced an extensive amount of both decentralization and neoliberal policies, and selects the water and sanitation sector, which 79 percent of all Mexican mayors list as the most important municipal responsibility. Through process tracing the author examines how two-macro-level processes—decentralization and neoliberal commercialization—interacted with the political and institutional context within Mexican municipalities to disincentivize the adoption of cost recovery, adversely affecting service outcomes. The causal leverage of this study is gained from “within-case” analysis of three of the largest urban centers within Mexico State (Estado de México): Naucalpan, Nezahualcóyotl (Neza), and Toluca. As the country’s economic powerhouse, Mexico State is a critical case for examining whether decentralization and commercialization policies have helped improve public services in Mexico more broadly. Such a wealthy state would be the least likely to have public services deficiencies, so if service problems are identified within Mexico State’s urban centers, they are more likely to be seen throughout the country in poorer and less industrialized regions. This article presents data collected as part of a larger research project on the politics of urban services reform in Mexico after the “top-down” implementation of decentralization and commercialization reforms. This larger research project, a subnational comparative research design, entailed extensive field research in more than nine cities located in the states of Mexico State, Guanajuato and Veracruz. The primary research question was: under what conditions do mayors successfully circumvent political and institutional barriers to services reform and adopt commercialization policies in the water and sanitation sector?

Data Abstract

The collected data cover the period from 1997 to 2012 and were gathered during extensive field research in 2007-2008 and 2012 that entailed 180 in-depth interviews, data collection from internal government documents, newspaper articles and archival material. Interviews lasted from one to four hours, and interview subjects were identified using snowball sampling. Almost all interviews were conducted in person at municipal, state and federal level of government with government employees, elected officials, policymakers, business leaders, consultants, engineers and academics. The author also observed meetings with government officials, the day-to-day office work of water utilities and also went on site visits with water utility engineers being interviewed to illustrate the conditions of the infrastructure network. In addition, archival research was conducted at the Archivo Historico del Agua in Mexico City, and in electronic archives in the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank (exploring the international loan history of Mexico’s water and sewage sector as well as diagnostic studies of the sector). Extensive research was conducted to identify all secondary source material written in Spanish about the cities under study, their local government, economies, party politics, democratization experiences, protests and collective action surrounding reform policies, and technical aspects of the water and sewage sector. This included extensive compilation and analysis of primary source documents – e.g., government performance data – at three tiers of government, including occasional reports from consultants or the private sector and newspaper coverage for the periods under study in local Spanish-language newspapers. Additionally, transparency requests were made to the government regarding the number and content of formal protest and petitions against government regarding the policies under study.

Almost all of interviews were tape recorded; of those, approximately 30 percent were transcribed, while the remaining 70 percent were summarized. Extensive notes were taken during and after each interview. For observations, notes were taken after events. For newspaper articles, information was scanned and later notes were taken on the content of the information (including timelines, and the construction of comparable categories of analysis for each case in table/chart form in order to identify the chain of events). For transparency requests sent to the government, notes were not taken or rewritten.

None of the interview material (audio, transcript or interview notes) is shared as part of the published project since no consent for this use was obtained from participants.

The data included in the planned active citation project that have been published in Mexico are not under copyright. Some of the secondary sources (academic material) being cited are, but the author has observed the standard of fair use. Standard QDR access for all shared source materials.

QDR is transitioning to a model where depositors bear some curation costs. Affiliates of QDR’s institutional members will often be able to deposit free of charge and discounts are available for others. <a href="https://qdr.syr.edu/deposit#deposit-fees">More information here.</a>